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A collection of stories from a variety of news organizations. Click here to find all of Richard's news stories.

Ideastream Public Media •

'He lived with us until he died.' Medina museum highlights local Underground Railroad ties

At the corner of Blake and Prospect in Downtown Medina sits the McDowell-Phillips House Museum. This historic home-turned-museum belonged to Elizabeth McDowell, the daughter of H.G. Blake, a 19th century Medina lawyer and member of the Ohio House of Representatives.The Medina County Historical Society spent over $700,000 to buy and restore the house in 2019. Shortly thereafter, while cleaning out the attic, Brian Feron, president of the Medina County Historical Society, says he and his team foun...
Ideastream Public Media •

Cleveland school's annual fair brings the fun while helping families with mental health

Bolton Elementary School’s annual community health fair has all the amenities you’d expect at a summer festival. In the parking lot, a DJ plays music over the loudspeaker. People are waiting in long lines at food trucks. Some kids are begging their parents to get them ice cream, while others jump around in a bouncy house.But this event in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood — now in its fifth year — has a purpose that goes beyond warm weather frivolity.“I think that what this has become is really a...
Ideastream Public Media •

This Cleveland artist turned her grandmother’s house into a center for arts entrepreneurship

Jada Renee always knew she wanted to be a professional artist, but she didn’t have a blueprint. Things started to come together for Renee’s artistic vision once she found out her family was selling her grandmother’s home in 2020. She wanted to keep the house in the family, so she worked with her business partner to buy it.“I had to basically make a proposal to get the property,” Renee says. “[I] brought my real estate mentor at the time to come over here and assist me with the presentation. It w...
Ideastream Public Media •

Cleveland is home to one of the nation's largest crisis nurseries. The model is hard to replicate

On a Friday afternoon, kids are romping outside on the playground at Providence House, a crisis nursery in Cleveland’s Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood. A couple of kids rev their toy cars by pulling backward, as they prepare for a race. The others watch and offer advice.Providence House is a crisis nursery — one of a few nationwide that provide necessities for children and families struggling economically, mentally or physically.“A crisis nursery is not foster care,” says Ashley Stock, the director...
Ideastream Public Media •

Shifting patterns in pet adoptions leave Northeast Ohio animal shelters at capacity

Pet shelters and animal adoption agencies across the country have been at or near capacity since the COVID-19 pandemic, and in Northeast Ohio many facilities report having more animals than new families to adopt them.Shelters and humane societies often see a cycle in adoption patterns, said Kate Lumsden, shelter coordinator at the Medina County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Seville.“In the summer, you'll see a lot of kittens get adopted because it's kitten season and...
Ideastream Public Media •

This Northeast Ohio company sends Arabic books to kids to connect them to culture, language

Arab-American populations are among the fastest-growing in the U.S., and Ohio has more than doubled its Arab-American population between 2000 and 2022. However, mainstream anti-Arab sentiment can be isolating for many young Arab-Americans.In part to combat negative stereotypes and isolation, media producer Rafa Saab and engineer Rania Khalaf co-founded ArabiKids, a subscription service that delivers children's books in Arabic to U.S. families. The company started in Boston, but Saab now runs the...
Ideastream Public Media •

From frustration to reimagining: Clevelanders grapple with the city's environmental future

Cleveland lawmakers are seeking new ways to address the city's environmental issues after losing more than $3 million in lead remediation funds. The state is revoking $3.3 million given to the city to address lead poisoning, as part of the Ohio Department of Development’s Lead Safe Ohio Program.Though the city is making slow progress, Cleveland has some of the highest rates of lead poisoning in children. The rate dropped to a new low of 14.5% in 2025, but that’s still much higher than the nation...
Ideastream Public Media •

Northeast Ohio’s aging population is getting lonelier. Fun and games can help

It’s 10 a.m. on a Friday, and the gym inside Friendly House in Mansfield is buzzing as a dozen or so seniors laugh and follow the steps to the Electric Slide.This event is a favorite offering from the iConnect program, which seeks to reduce isolation and loneliness among people over 55.Tending to participants' needs and trying out an occasional step of her own is Deborah Wherry Bey, the program's leader.“We do technology, book clubs, we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we went to Motown,...
Ideastream Public Media •

Amid funding scares, NASA Glenn is developing 'gas stations' for the moon and Mars

NASA Glenn Research Center is developing a new technology to use ice on the moon and Mars to make fuel for space travel — increasing the potential distance and length of future expeditions.“Our wider goal is to develop the technologies needed for NASA's future missions,” said Evan Racine, an aerospace engineer and project manager at NASA Glenn.To explain the potential benefits to space travel of the fuel technology, called CryoFill, Racine uses the analogy of a long road trip from Cleveland to L...
Ideastream Public Media •

A massive crack in frozen Lake Erie means no more ice walks for Clevelanders

Northeast Ohio has been under a deep freeze since January. Cleveland, specifically, didn’t see temperatures over freezing for 18 days in January and early February — the longest such streak since the winter of 2000 and 2001. Those temperatures caused 95% of the surface of Lake Erie to freeze.While experts warn that walking on the ice is dangerous under any circumstances, the extensive ice coverage has drawn some adventurous Northeast Ohioans to explore the surface of the lake on foot.At Clevelan...
Ideastream Public Media •

Cleveland's Gordon Park offers a rare chance for better East Side lakefront access, students say

Gordon Park on Cleveland's East Side — part of Cleveland Metroparks' Lakefront Reservation — offers a long list of amenities spread across its 122 lakefront acres. There are boat ramps, walking trails, tennis courts and a picnic lawn.But ever since Interstate 90 was built in the 1950s, East Siders have had a hard time accessing the park, and Lake Erie in general.Cleveland Metroparks has been working on solutions to the problem for several years. And they’ve recently gotten some help from student...
Ideastream Public Media •

'It can be brutal': Ohio's rural homeless shelters brace for a cold winter

Inside the laundry room at Homeward Bound, a homeless shelter in Wooster, a volunteer folds the latest batch of bedding, while a washing machine spins a sudsy load."We do a lot of laundry as you can imagine. We provide all the bedding and the shower and towels and stuff like that," says Brandon Barnes, the shelter's executive director.Homeward Bound opened earlier this year and can accommodate up to 44 people at a time.Wayne County doesn't have as many homeless people as more urban counties like...
Ideastream Public Media •

This 90-year old runner from North Olmsted won't slow down

When she was growing up, Marilyn Olsen of North Olmsted says girls didn’t play sports. She herself was a party girl, preferring dancing to any organized exercise.“When I got out of high school, it was the bars or the ballrooms,” Olsen said. “Never, never anything athletic, but the dancing was good.”That changed when she was 45. A coworker recommended that Olsen join her for a race, and from there she fell in love with the sport of running. She ended up placing third in her first 5K.“I tried it a...
Ideastream Public Media •

Lorain County’s Black girls struggle mentally. Experts look for answers

This story came from Ideastream Public Media’s engaged journalism team, as part of our commitment to telling stories with people and communities across Northeast Ohio.On a recent Saturday morning, a conference at Lorain County Community College kicked off the county's new chapter of Black Girl Rising, a nonprofit helping Black girls build confidence.Girls and teenagers from across the county sat together at tables, listening intently as speakers and panelists discuss a topic of growing importanc...
Ideastream Public Media •

Mansfield's 'Pothole Haters' aim to leave no road unpaved

Eric Miller says Mansfield has some of the best roads in the state. But it wasn’t always like this.“Our streets were in deplorable condition,” Miller said. “They were falling apart, most of the streets were in terrible shape, and we just needed to do something about it.”Back in the 1980s, Miller — a lawyer — started a group called the Committee for Better Streets, dedicated to fixing the streets for everyone.The idea, he says, was this: “How can you, as a modern-day citizen, do something that he...
Ideastream Public Media •

‘I speak lead': Through fungi and stories, Cleveland advocates tackle environmental justice

Robin Brown’s former home sits on the corner of East 116th and Luke Avenue, in Cleveland’s Mount Pleasant neighborhood. Today, the home is abandoned; porch floorboards are torn up, paint chips are peeling off the side of the home, and windows are broken.However, this vacant home ended up changing Brown’s life in a way she would’ve never expected. Brown says she was driving to pick up her daughter from daycare when she received a phone call from her daughter’s physician with some startling news.“...
Ideastream Public Media •

'It's not gonna stop.' Cleveland food pantry vows to continue despite federal funding cuts

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland's Detroit Shoreway neighborhood distributes fresh produce through the Greater Cleveland Food Bank’s Mobile Pantry Program, which served more than 4,000 families last year.Vidorian Massingale, affectionately known as Chef Vi, is the executive chef for the church’s mobile pantry. Before this job, she was working in food service in schools, but wanted a career that could help people more directly.“I love working here,” Massingale said. “Everybody is just so...
Ideastream Public Media •

Despite Cleveland's unpredictable weather, these beekeepers hope to keep the hive alive

It’s a bright and sunny Sunday afternoon so, naturally, I’m spending the day outside. But I’m not relaxing or tanning — today, I’m an honorary beekeeper.I'm joining Danie White for a hive drop, where we’re moving bees from a temporary hive to a more permanent structure. White is helping Lexxus Davis, her friend and fellow beekeeper, acclimate the bees to a new hive in Davis’ garden in Cleveland's Central neighborhood. We’re all decked out in thick, white beekeeping suits to protect ourselves fro...
Ideastream Public Media •

After shooting, Shaker Heights Public Library remains a space for everyone

A 15-year-old Shaker Heights High School student is accused of shooting and killing an 18-year-old peer in front of the city’s main library branch on Van Aken Boulevard on April 1.The shooting was highly disturbing for local parents, including Nogira Fitch. The day of the shooting, her son called her to pick him up early, but she had a schedule conflict.“And then an hour later, I hear about this,” Fitch recalled in the library's parking lot several weeks after the shooting. “So, immediately, fea...
Ideastream Public Media •

'Will my life be cut short too?': Cleveland 10-year-old wants action after gun violence kills friend

Lorenzo Roberson is like any other 10-year-old. He enjoys playing basketball and football — he even wants to play for the Minnesota Vikings when he grows up. He’s energetic, talkative and fidgety. However, Roberson, like many children affected by gun violence, carries a heavy burden. Kaden Coleman, his best friend, died as a result of gun violence in early February.After losing his friend to gun violence, Lorenzo wanted to relay a passionate message to City of Cleveland officials to save his own...
Ideastream Public Media •

Voter turnout is low for Latinos. Can these Cleveland canvassers reverse the trend?

Alberto Ramos Cordero and Micaela Barrett have been out canvassing 20 hours per week over the last few months. They recently spent time roaming Ward 12 on Cleveland's southwest side, home to a high concentration of Latino residents. They've been working to raise the Latino voter turnout for the November election.Cordero and Barrett, who are members of Cleveland’s Young Latino Network, arrived for a recent shift around 3:30 p.m., parking their car at the corner of West 20th Street and Natchez Ave...
Ideastream Public Media •

Organizers call for community investment from Huntington after push to reopen Buckeye bank

Mary Boyle is a depositor at Huntington Bank. Back in October 2023, she came home one day to some unwelcome news.Her local bank in Cleveland's Buckeye neighborhood would be one of the 34 branches closing in Ohio by Feb. 9, 2024, a letter said, citing a spike in violent crime in the area.Boyle had seen businesses leave Buckeye for years. She noticed a pattern: when businesses leave Buckeye, their departure affects the neighborhoods they leave and the residents who remain, which forces even more b...
Marketplace •

How a bank failure 150 years ago still shapes many Black Americans’ relationships to financial institutions

The Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company, also known as the Freedman’s Bank, was established in March 1865 by white abolitionists, bankers and philanthropists. According to the Treasury Department, the bank was created to “help develop the newly freed African Americans as they endeavored to become financially stable.” Within the first few years, the bank flourished, with 37 established branches and more than 100,000 depositors in total.However, the bank failed after less than a decade, due to a...
Marketplace •

How are Black communities in the rural South dealing with digital redlining?

In today’s economy, broadband internet is virtually essential. It affects people’s ability to apply for jobs or work from home, pay bills, turn in schoolwork or use telehealth services. But in many communities across the rural South, residents don’t have reliable and affordable internet access. Black households in the South suffer the most; 38% of Black residents don’t have home internet, according to a 2021 study. Some residents pay exorbitant prices for spotty broadband service or rely on co...
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